strasbourg, france.

day 79 // sat mar 31

Strasbourg was a breath of fresh air for us! Paris was amazing, but we had literally zero plans for our stay in Strasbourg. Just some facts for you—the city has been known as a cultural bridge between France and Germany for centuries. Strasbourg is also the capital and largest city of the Grand Est region of France. It is the official seat of the European Parliament. Just so ya know!

We arrived in Strasbourg early afternoon. We easily found our Airbnb and were SO happy. It was beautiful. It was also located on the Gutenberg Square which was very cool. The first picture below is the view from our window, amazing.

day 80 // sun april 1

day 81 // mon april 2

paris, france.

day 77 // thur march 29

Oh my, what a day! Wade and I booked a train out of Köln for Paris leaving at 12:42PM. We knew we wanted to get on the 11:53AM train from Bonn to Köln. That gave us 25 minutes to switch trains—totally doable. We were running a bit behind that morning and walked/jogged very fast to be sure we didn't miss the first train to Köln. We made it and quote Wade, "the hardest part of the journey is over." Well, he was wrong. Our train stopped... just stopped. When we heard the long German announcement come over the loudspeaker we got very nervous, but we happened to sitting by a nice lady that translated the message. Turns out she was also trying to catch the 12:42PM train to Paris. Apparently there were some issues with something or someone on the tracks near the main station which meant we weren't moving in the foreseeable future. To keep this brief, after about 20 minutes of waiting, running around (literally), and stress we decided we had to take a cab in order to MAYBE catch our train. We split the fare with 3 other people also trying to get to the main station. We got to Köln HBF and had sadly had missed our train. We went to the service desk and asked for advice on what to do. We had pre-bought tickets (that weren't cheap) for that specific train to Paris. The German train line said we had to talk to the French train line, and vice versa. Very coooool. Essentially no one could help us and the verdict was that they recommended buying all new (very expensive) train tickets. Luckily the nice French lady we met on the first train, Marie, encouraged us to take a risk and get on the later train to Paris at 4:20PM with her. She said we could most likely, fingers crossed, convince the train conductor that we DID have tickets but missed our train do to a problem on the German train line. We took the risk and it paid off! Marie stayed with us the entire journey to Paris and talked to the train conductors explaining why we had a different ticket. She was a total God send or I probably would've given up. While waiting on our new train in Köln we had coffee and pie with our friend Marie. We also walked down the river and chatted. She was very kind!

After all of that, we finally made to Paris!! Ris and Jarrod were waiting for us at the platform. I almost cried, no lie. It was so good to see friends, especially a friend that I shared this journey with before. We made so many memories, now we were getting to share those memories with our spouses. So surreal.

We left the train station and took the metro back to our Airbnb. We caught up for a little bit, but by this point we had all had a very long day of travel (even more so for them, talk about jet lag). We found a cafe near our apartment and had a nice meal. We called it a night because we knew the next day would be packed to the brim.

day 78 // fri march 30

We decided to divide and conquer this morning. Jarrod and Wade really wanted to go to the Louvre while Ris and I had already been and decided we would rather explore a different area of Paris. Ris had done a ton of research and planning so I let her take the lead. The boys headed out to see some art and us girls for some shopping. First Ris and I want to the Tuileries Garden. It wasn’t quite in bloom yet, nonetheless still pretty! We then wandered through a few bookstores and ended up at a macaron shop. We had two on our list for the day—I’ll compare them later, don’t worry.

You guys, I had chips and salsa! I die. Marissa found this found taco joint on a blog and knew we had to try it out. It didn't disappoint. Maybe that was because I have haven't had any semblance of Mexican food in several months, or maybe it was just that yummy. One may never know. Then we wandered through this cute neighborhood called Haut Marais. I highly recommend it, if even only to window shop. It's supposedly very up-and-coming. We found such great storefronts and tiny little shops. One of my favorites was a gallery called Slow Galerie, go figure. It was filled to the brim with artists' prints. Even after our tacos we passed a bakery that we just couldn't say no to. We were both itching for a real croissant. I had the best pastry with crispy almonds on top. Makes my mouth water thinking about it. After our lives had been forever changed, we checked out this cool department store called Mercí that was like a mix of World Market, Urban Outfitters and Pottery Barn.

We eventually met back up with the boys. From here we headed toward the Notre Dame. We weren't even really thinking about it being Good Friday. We got in line to go inside and it turned out they were actually having a service start soon. We decided to stay for about 15-20 minutes to hear the choir sing and see the start of the service. What a cool experience, definitely the right time at the right place.

We eventually strolled our way to our dinner spot. It was also in a very cute area of town. The restaurant was called Season. Cool vibes with decent food.

Some of my favorite stops in Paris:

Tuileries Garden - garden, duh - 113 Rue de Rivoli, 75001 Paris, France
Ladurée - my fav macarons - 14 Rue de Castiglione, 75001 Paris, France
Pierre Hermé - second fave macarons - 4 Rue Cambon, 75001 Paris, France
Candelaria - cool taco joint - 52 Rue de Saintonge, 75003 Paris, France
Mercí - really rad department store - 111 Boulevard Beaumarchais, 75003 Paris, France
Kilo Shop - pay by the kilo thrift store - 69-71 Rue de la Verrerie, 75004 Paris, France
Slow Galerie - artist shop - 5 Rue Jean-Pierre Timbaud, 75011 Paris, France
Season - cool dinner spot - 1 Rue Charles-François Dupuis, 75003 Paris, France
Boulangerie 59 RdS - amazing bakery - 59 Rue de Saintonge, 75003 Paris, France

Now for the burning question: Ladurée vs. Pierre Hermé

I loved Ladurée! The macarons were SO soft and airy. The Pierre Hermé macarons were good, don't get me wrong, but the Ladurée ones won hands down. The flavor choices could also play a roll in my decision, but I am still sticking with Ladurée. I got 3 different ones at Ladurée—a strawberry poppy, gingerbread, and lemon. At Pierre Hermé I got Ispahan (rose, litchi, and raspberry) and a classic chocolate. Jarrod said the pecan one from PH was to die for. He said it was like the filling of a Texas pecan pie, yes please. That will have to be for next time! So if you only had time (or money because they add up quick) for one macron shop, I vote Ladurée. Not to mention the store is so cute and their neon sign was pretty great.

day 79 // sat march 31

Saturday we had about half a day in Paris before our train left for Strasbourg. We knew we wanted to go have a photoshoot at the eiffel tower. But first we needed to drop off our bags near the train station. We took the metro what seemed like forever to Paris Est and dropped our bags at a hotel. We used a service called Nanny Bag. You pay per bag to store your luggage until your train or plane leaves. I think it was 30euro for all of us. We then headed to the tower. I will say I was kind of bummed because there was so much construction around it. When Ris and I were there last you could walk underneath the tower, but this time they had everything blocked off. Wade said it was smaller than he had imagined it. I think it's hard to see or feel the scale without being super close to it. Oh well. Any way, we hung out at the field and took tons of photos. As were about to leave I asked a nice older gentleman to take a group photo of us on my phone. He killed it honestly. I love when you find that tourist that takes the best photo. He even did the photography stance, you know the one I'm talking about! Proof is in the pudding above.

After our photoshoot we were on a mission to find this store Marissa and I had gone to the day before. I found this black jumpsuit I really wanted. (I don't know why I just didn't get it the previous day. whatever, maybe I'm indecisive). We walked up and down the street until finally we spotted the store. I tried on a few things and decided it was a go! After our little shopping excursion we found a cool burger place on one of the back streets.

*side note: burger joints are SO popular in Europe right now. After talking with a few German friends it seems they are popping up like wildfire. I feel like this trend hit a few years back in the states. It's funny to see how food trends migrate.

It was probably one of the best burgers I've had while in Europe. You got handed a menu and you got to build your own burger. There were options for avocado, caramelized onion, 4 different cheese, etc. I had to double check to be sure that all of this wasn't additional. I feel like at most places in America avocado and grilled onions are like $4 extra. Not here. Needless to say it was really yummy—served with fries and aioli (my fav). We eventually wondered to the train station and loaded up. It was just a short ride to Strasbourg.

Paris, you were fun. I loved exploring the cool little neighborhoods and shops. I felt inspired and oh so full of amazing sweets. This go-round in Paris felt different in a good way. We experience things differently the older we get. We also appreciate things more, or at least I do.

florence, italy.

day 57 // fri march 9

Spring Break, woo! Our first Italian stop was Florence! We flew (Ryan Air again, sadly) but this time we had a little better luck. I even sat front row on the plane with lots of legroom. Wade however was not as lucky. We took off around 4:30, landed in Bergamo (a smaller town outside of Milan), took a train to Milan then switched trains to Florence. We arrived in Florence that evening around 10:00pm. At this point we had travelled by plane, bus and train which meant we were hungry! We found a place called Mr. Pizza and each had a pie. Don’t judge. That’s one of my favorite parts about Italy. You are encouraged, even expected, to eat an entire pizza by yourself. In fact I feel like it is looked down on if you don't—my kind of country.

Being Spring Break and all we decided to take it easy. We really had no “plans” for Florence besides the main attractions, a few sandwich places recommended by friends, and then 1 or 2 other internet finds.

day 58 // sat march 10

Day 1 was our 'exploring day'. We walked a total of 11 something miles. We saw the Ponte Vecchio first, then explored some of the markets. We found one of the main markets. I had a pizza flatbread with eggplant and brie. It was amazing. I ate the whole dang thing. While browsing the markets, I really wanted to buy an Italian leather jacket, but being me I wanted to research to be sure I was buying the real thing. I read so many horror stories of spending 200+ euro on an “Italian” leather jacket that was just a reproduction. Needless to say I couldn’t find one I was ready to commit to. I had a vision of what I wanted, but just couldn’t pull the trigger. Oh well, gives me a reason to go back, right?

My favorite part about Florence was the hidden beauty at every turn. You would just be walking and then boom the Duomo. There were statues galore, literally all over the city. We hiked up to one of the tallest points of the city to see a garden and view overlooking the main city but it was closed—we got a workout in, though. We had coffee (or I did) and gelato twice that day. For dinner we went to a place near our Airbnb. Speaking of, our Airbnb was the ideal location literally steps from all of the main areas and sights. It was a bit noisy a night, but totally worth it for the location. Any way, for dinner we ate at a place called Osteria Il Gatto E la Volpe or "The cat & The Fox. I had carbonara and Wade had truffle pasta. He won that one. I could bathe in truffle oil, but maybe that’s tmi. Of course after dinner we went out for gelato. After the 11 miles and all that pasta we were definitely ready for sleep.

day 59 // sun march 11

Our plan for the second day in Florence was to get up early and get in line at the Uffizi. We got there a little after 8am which was definitely a good choice. It opened at 8:30am and we were inside by 9AM. We planned well because the weather outside was less than ideal. Super rainy, but perfect for museum visiting. The Uffizi is one of the most well known art museums and it didn’t disappoint. This thing was a huge. When visiting Florence with Marissa we didn’t go into the museum, so it was new to me! Actually Marissa and I didn’t see too many museums. Just not our thing. We sat and wrote a lot. Wadde and I spent the entire morning at the museum then went to a little sandwich shop Virginia had recommended. I unfortunately ordered the wrong thing and wasn’t a huge fan. (Also since being so sick last week I’ve had semi-meat aversion) We did have these truffle fried dough balls that were killer. The weather was still unfortunate so we went back to the Airbnb for an afternoon siesta. We eventually headed back out for another round of pizza and gelato. It was still very rainy, but we found a place we could set-up shop and people watch. We found the Bronze Boar statue and Wade rubbed his nose for a return to trip to Florence. He also dropped a coin out of his mouth, but it didn't bode as well, no good luck for us!

day 60 // mon march 12

We had a 9am train to head to Rome. The sun was bright and shiny, made me sad to leave! I love Florence and would gladly go back. I feel like it is a city you can visit so many times and never get bored.

prague, czech republic.

day 29 // fri feb 9th

Prague, oh Prague. You have stolen our hearts. Our first impression of Prague was much, much different than the vibe we got in Brussels. I came to Prague during my 2011 adventures and legitimately fractured my foot stepping off the train into Prague. Needless to say, I liked the city then, but it was slightly tarnished by the fact I had to hobble everywhere.

Wade and I flew to Prague via Eurowings for under €120 each. We were tempted with train tickets but they were more expensive and took way longer. We left the Bonn-Cologne airport at 1:55 and arrive in Prague at 2:55. So worth it.

Okay so preface: I had watched several YouTube videos about Prague and I kept seeing that you could get a traditional Czech meal for a good price at the cafeteria in the airport. It is where most of the employees eat, but is also open to the public. When we landed we were both starving so we thought we might as well try! It actually didn’t disappoint. I had a traditional Czech meal, which I couldn't pronounce. The total was around €10 for 2 meals, a piece of cake, and a soda. We left the airport via a short bus ride to the nearest metro line. Travel day passes were only around €5 a person, definitely a smart investment for this city! We got off the metro at our stop and it opened up to a beautiful square with a cathedral and the cutest line of buildings. We met our Airbnb host and he was very kind to show us the space. Nothing fancy, but the neighborhood made up for it tenfold.

We settled in for a little and then ventured out. Prague has amazing public transportation as mentioned above (like most all of Europe) but here specifically they have an above-ground tram, bus and metro system. All 3 of which are included in that €5 day pass. They also have the longest escalators I have ever seen! We hopped on the metro and took it a few stops down to Wenceslas Square. We wondered around a bit, bought some new socks for me-ha, and stumbled upon this big face sculpture that was pretty cool.

After a bit we decided we would head back to our neighborhood for dinner, but we took a tram back this time to see a little more of the city. We found a few good options, but we weren’t aware that almost all places here need a reservation. Boo! We finally picked a different place (it wasn’t our first choice) but it ended up being decent. Then we then found another little cafe to end the night with some dessert.

day 30 // sat feb 10th

You guys. I had a huge latte the next morning and it brought me so much joy. My morning coffee and quiet time are seriously the fave part of my day. We went to Costa which is a bigger chain of cafes (similar to Starbucks I’m guessing). I ordered a tiramisu latte and it was massive—it even had two handles! We enjoyed the slow morning and trekked to see some sights.

Wade and I’s travel style is to walk around and see what we find, hit the main points, then venture off the beaten path. We are also currently eating our way through Europe and I’m totally okay with that. We both lost quite a bit a weight last year, and don’t want to go nuts, but the food is SO good. Not to mention we average 10 miles a day on the weekend so I don’t feel too terrible. All of that to say, our weekend “to-do” lists include a few main sites per city, then really good food places! On that list today was Mr. HotDog. I found it via Instagram and knew I had to try it out. First all, I love hot dogs. Secondly, I love a good neon sign and look how cute! We then headed to the Lennon Wall, the Dancing House, Old Prague Square, Charles Bridge—all the main attractions. We had a pretty early night, just the way we like it.

day 31 // sun feb 11th

We woke up Sunday with 2 things on our agenda; the Prague Castle and eating at Eska. We took the metro to the castle stop then hiked, a for real hike through tiny streets, up to the top. The views were beautiful!

After the castle we headed off to find the restaurant I'd found online with pretty good reviews and a beautiful aesthetic. &&& Holy Moly! Eska was my favorite meal I’ve had in Europe so far. Here is a list of what we ordered:

Homemade sourdough bread with egg spread and radish
Sausages from Naše maso, mustard and a sweet horseradish
Crepes with homemade strawberry jam and soft curd cheese
Rosehip cappuccino—with homemade rosehip syrup that it was DELICIOUS.

day 28 // thurs feb 8th – day 32 // mon feb 12th

Karneval in Bonn!

On Thursday we met at the AIB to get everyone in the spirit of Karneval and to put the finishing touches on our costumes. They had music, face paint and Berliners (traditional Karneval goodies—aka jelly filled donuts).

We went to watch a parade in a neighbor of Bonn called Beuel. The parade was fun but so cold! We brought a bag to catch the massive amounts of candy that was thrown from the parade floats. I mean lots and lots of candy.

We got back from Prague on Sunday and Monday we went to the big Karneval Parade in Bonn. We met up with a few people from AIB and got a lot more goodies and more Hairbo than we could ever want or need-ha!

cologne, germany.

day 11 // mon jan 22nd

Mondays are movie nights. Down the street from our apartment/school is a local theatre that does a €5 English screening of a movie that isn’t out yet in the states. It’s apparently a very big deal and the movie theatre was recently voted one of the best in Germany. That being said, we had planned on going this week but tickets sold out faster than normal (due to mentioned award above) so we forfeit our tickets to a few of the students. Maybe next week though!

day 12 // tue jan 23rd

Normal class day—nothing too fancy. I have been going to a gym this week, though. My thought is that I can feel better about eating ALL the amazing goodness if I work out during the week. All about balance right? Speaking of, we have a weekly faculty meeting for all the visiting faculty to met each other, discuss the program and socialize once a week. This week we met at Beirhaus Machold, which is a traditional German style restaurant. Wade had jägerschnitzel and I had something I couldn’t pronounce but it reminded me of a potatoe pancake topped with apple compote. Felt like I needed a nap after that meal.

day 13 // wed jan 24th

I woke up with a bit of cold, maybe due the fact we ran around Koblenz in the rain last weekend? Anywho, I took it easy (and took Dayquil) before adventuring that afternoon to the Haus der Geschichte (House of the History of the Federal Republic of Germany) Museum in Bonn. This museum focuses on the history of German after WW2 and gets around 1 million visitors every year. We had a led tour that was very informative and intriguing.

day 14 // thurs jan 25th

Today we had a day-trip to Cologne, Germany. It's very near to Bonn and very full of life. We started the day off with a trip to the Wallraf-Richartz Art Museum. We went to lunch at a chain-style restaurant that is pretty well known and for good reason. It was called Vapiano's. I had a pesto and spinach pizza and Wade had mushroom risotto! Then we did a guided walking tour of the city and last, but definitely not least, we toured the Cologne Cathedral (Köln Dom). We had a roof-top tour that is not generally offered to the public. You literally take the work elevator up, then crawlled through the very top attic-like parts of one of the biggest (top 4) cathedrals in all of Europe. We took a tiny spiral staircase all the way up. So cool and only slightly terrifying!

koblenz, germany.

day 8 // fri jan 19th

School day today and a historic city tour of Bonn in the afternoon. We had lunch at an Asian/Thai joint that our friend Lin found one day. They had a curry special for 4,90 euro and it was tasty. Wade loves curry and I've now jumped on the curry bandwagon since our time together.

Our tour guide was a sweet lady originally from London but had been in Bonn for 30+ years. She had a great sense of humor and her english was obviously very good. We learned a lot of some of the neat details about this interesting city.

That evening Wade and I had been dreaming about this burger place called Burger Manufaktur that our AIB directors had for lunch one day this week. It smelled and looked delicious so we knew we had to try it. It was about a half a mile walk from our apartment, so not too bad. It was a tiny little place with such a cute ambiance. We ordered and waited for a seat. The fries y'all—they were to die for!

day 9 // sat jan 20th

Wade and I took a day trip to Koblenz, Germany. It was about an hour train ride south of Bonn. We got to the train station to purchase tickets, which we thought we did correctly, but immediately doubted ourselves and had to ask someone to verify.

We got on the correct train and made it a few stops. Then we realized we were almost the only ones still on the train. We politely asked a woman if this train was going to the Koblenz HBF and she said yes that's where she was going, too. We proceed to sit back down then frantically she comes up to us and said she had misspoken and only part of the train was proceeding ahead! We darted off the train and ran to a different car that WAS going to Koblenz. All very funny looking back at it now.

Once arriving in Koblenz we got to the main train station and I paid 1 euro to go to the restroom. I then took a selfie in their full-length mirror because well, I paid 1 euro for it. After that we got a chocolate covered pastry with a little clown on it (I'm guessing for Karneval, not totally sure) and started to explore. It was slightly raining, but then it started to come down more and more. We found a cute little pizza place and took a lunch break inside for a bit hoping the rain would lighten. We shared a salami pizza.

We eventually found the Deutsches Eck (or 'German Corner') where the Mosel river joins the Rhine. This corner is known for a HUGE monumental equestrian statue of William I, the first German Emperor, erected in 1897 in appreciation of his merits in the unification of Germany. This thing was massive and so cool. We were both in awe of its size.

We explored some more and decided it was time to head back to Bonn. It was a nice day even if the rain was trying to dampen our spirits (pun intended).

PS - today was the 5 year anniversary of Wade and I's first date. the cutest <3

day 10 // sun jan 21st

I took a spin class today... totally in German. I've taken spin classes at the student rec for awhile now, but nothing like this. The instructor taught me how to set up the bike with purely hand motions and a handful of words neither fully understood. The nice thing about spin is that it's all about rhythm and personal drive. At the end he gave me a high-five and complimented me... I think.